Bunny scrambled up the stairs to the path and headed in that direction to see exactly what Mr. Smith had been up to.
* * *
Sam had walked farther than he’d intended, but Dooley had wanted to keep going. Sam was surprised to discover that he didn’t mind. They’d walked up to where the path had a little shortcut through a wooded area. In this little area was a series of copper plaques with the names of people who had donated to the upkeep of the path.
Sam’s eyes misted as he read through the names. At the bottom were empty spaces for more names. Jean’s name was on the list to be printed on one of those.
As if sensing his sadness, Dooley pressed against Sam’s leg and snuffed his hand.
That brought a smile to Sam’s face. And when he looked up at the ocean to see the sun kissing the tops of the waves, heard the birds chirping in the trees, and felt the sea breeze on his face, his heart lifted. Maybe there were still things to be grateful for.
“Let’s go back to the car, eh?”
Dooley looked a little disappointed.
“Okay, maybe we’ll sit on one of the benches for a spell.”
Dooley’s tail wagged in response.
Sam felt a little lighter as they walked back. He chose a bench not far from the car, overlooking the little beaches that were revealed when the tide receded. Maybe tomorrow, he’d take Dooley down onto the beach. He knew the dog would like that.
He took out a treat and fed it to Dooley, who had settled in at his feet. When Dooley didn’t take the treat right away, Sam looked down to see Dooley was busy staring at something to the left.
Sam followed his gaze to see a person scurrying over the rocks at the base of the cliff.
What in the world? Wait a minute…The silver-tinted auburn hair looked familiar.Is that the woman from the car? And what in the world is she doing?
It looked like she was inspecting something on the rocks. She held up a piece of something that looked like a cantaloupe rind. How odd.
Then she rummaged in her tote, pulling out a variety of things before settling on a…What is that? A measuring tape?
He felt a pang of something in his gut, something he hadn’t felt in a long time. It was his detective instincts. The instincts that had allowed him to catch hundreds of criminals. The instincts that had given him a purpose in life. The instincts that he thought were long gone.
He leaned forward, feeling that spark of excitement he used to get. His days on the force were long over, but this woman and her odd behavior made him wonder if maybe he didn’t necessarily need to be on official police business to investigate. She was clearly up to something, and maybe he could find out what it was. Of course, if it was something criminal, then he would report his findings to the police. He still had contacts.
But there was something about the woman that made him hope she wasn’t some kind of criminal. Maybe it was her auburn hair, which reminded him of Jean’s hair, or maybe it was the air of determination that radiated from her.
He noticed how she was gingerly stepping over the rocks. He guessed her to be around his age, but she didn’t seem to be afraid of falling and breaking something. Nope, she had a clear purpose and wasn’t going to let anything stop her. She was clearly not a useless old person.
Was that what he’d become? Jean wouldn’t like that at all. And with that thought, he felt something shift inside him. It was as if Jean were reaching out to give him a nudge.
Here was something he could do to get back into the swing of things and make himself feel useful again.
He had a million ideas on how to find out who the woman was and what she was up to. He found himself hoping she wasn’t up to anything too nefarious. He was also hoping she didn’t fall. Despite her suspicious behavior, there was something he liked about her.
“Woof!”
“You think so too?” He fed Dooley a treat. “We’re almost out of these. Better make a trip to Sandcastles to get some more. I think we’ve just found ourselves something interesting to do.”
CHAPTERNINE
“I’ll have a half moon and two cannoli please.”
Claire turned from wiping down the coffee station to see Bunny Howard standing at the bakery case. Her face was flushed, and she looked excited. “Hi, Bunny. How are you?”
“Great. You? Have you started the new book yet?”
Claire grabbed a pastry tissue and reached into the case for the half-vanilla-half-chocolate frosted pastries. “Not yet, but I’m looking forward to our new book club meeting.”
